Car Maintenance 101: Solving Shock Absorbing Problem

(That thing in black cost me RM125!)

I guess I ran into some good luck last week…

Ever since I have changed my tires last November, I have been noticing some vibration sound from the tires whenever I am taking the corners. At first, I dismissed it as just being tires working out on the new treads. But deep down, I was not satisfied because I know that the Duracos should be very quiet tires and the vibration sound when cornering seems to tell a totally different story.

This has been going on for almost a month and finally last weekend, I decided to go to another tire shop to get a second opinion. After work, I drove to the shop nearest to my office but I had to wait in queue because there were too many cars being serviced. After waiting for 5 minutes, I decided to head off to another shop – this time in Puchong. When I almost reach the shop, I noticed that the road leading to the shop has been closed for some road work. Frustrated, I turned away and drove off when I noticed another shop near my old house. Just when I was parking the car, the shop owner was coming back from his lunch and came to my car to query on the problem. They took the car in and start checking the shock absorbers and the wheel bearing. Another guy was checking on the tires but dismissed as it being the cause as the tires are still brand new.

Then they found the source of the problem.

The rear wheel bearing was damaged (when they turn the wheel, the shock vibrates – it should not) and is in need of a replacement. They also found the shock absorbers (front and rear) was leaking oil and need to be changed as well. Actually on the shock absorber, I have been thinking about changing it for some time since it has passed the limit 50,000 kilometers for shock absorbers. My car has been riding on almost 83,000 kilometers and is still with the original shock absorbers that came with the car.

The shop replaced the old absorbers with brand new KYB shock absorbers which was ok with me although I thought of changing it to Monroe type shock absorbers (if I had the money). In addition to “repairing” the more urgent parts of my car, I also opted to change my rear brake shoes and do the wheel alignment & balancing.

The total cost was RM635.00 and the breakdown was as follows:-

Rear Wheel Bearing – RM136 (2 pieces cost RM68 each)

Front Shock Absorbers – RM250 (2 pieces cost RM125 each)

Rear Shock Absorbers – RM136 (2 pieces cost RM68 each)

Rear Brake Shoes – RM68

Wheel Alignment & Balancing – RM35

Labor Charges – RM10

It is little pricey but considering the parts that was changed and safety reasons, it hardly a dent in my budget.

The ride is now smoother and very much quieter. The shock seems good and is able to take the ups & downs of the road well but they are a bit soft and feel bouncy. Due to new absorbers and brake shoes, the braking has improved. It was a costly affair to change the absorbers but as the guy at the shop said to me – if I don’t change it now, it will cause damage to the axle which easily cost RM1,000 to repair / replace. So, which is cheaper thing to do?

Changing minor parts now is much better than changing the major parts when it is too late. But sometimes it happens when we least expected – that is when it becomes too costly.

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